Children's Literature and Movies, Therapy and Service Dogs, the Planet Of The Dogs book series, and books for dog lovers.

January 2013

January 20, 2013

There is a storm of concern in the world of children's and Young Adult (YA) literature.

It revolves around the the issues of content that may be inappropriate or even harmful to young readers.

There are few guidelines in the current era regarding brutality, violence and fear.

The Storm also involves movies inspired by children's and YA literature.

It varies in turbulence and there is little agreement regarding the rather unpredictable consequences of the books and movies involved. These range from The Hunger Games to the Hobbit movie and from the brothers Grimm to the teen books of Lauren Myracle.

Evidence ofThe Storm is posted below...

(The Tundra Town trader in the illustration above is from our children's book, Snow Valley Heroes, A Christmas Tale, Volume 3 in the Planet Of The Dogs books, a series deemed by critics, moms, teachers and librarians as not harmful, but inspiring)

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The more that you read, the more things you will know.The more you learn, the more places you'll go. — Dr. Seuss, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!

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The Storm gathered momentum when prominent journalsts, educators and blogger began raising questions about the appropriate audience for the movie based on The Hunger Games Book. At the time of the movie's release, the book, a crossover from Young Adult to Adult, had already sold a phenomenal 12 million copies since it's publication in 2008...

The Hunger Games movie was about to be released when Pamela Paul, author, journalist, mother, and Children's Book Editor/Reviewer for the New York Times, asked: "Who is the audience for "The Hunger Games"? Here are excerpts from her excellent, provacative article...

"HERE’S a pop math quiz: "The Hunger Games”, a best-selling novel by Suzanne Collins about children killing children, is recommended for readers 12 and older. The "Hunger Games" movie, which shows kids killing kids, is angling for a PG-13 rating when it hits theaters March 23. To complicate matters, many readers under the age of 12 are dying to see the movie...

So who is the audience for “The Hunger Games”? A tense and gritty critique of media culture with violence as entertainment... it could be a movie squarely aimed at grown-ups. Or a family film that works on different levels for older and younger viewers, the way Pixar releases do. Or it could be the next "Twilight", another smash young-adult-novel-to-teen-movie adaptation with a similarly vexing (if less prominent) love triangle.

The open question reflects the book’s audience. In recent years a wave of popular young-adult novels has generated a happy convergence of readers who are young, readers who are young adults and readers who are, well, old adults. These best sellers may have caught Hollywood’s attention, and led to major deals... But that doesn’t make even a blockbuster like “The Hunger Games,” which has sold more than 11 million copies in the United States since it came out in 2008, a sure box office hit...

One of the film’s producers, Nina Jacobson, who described herself as obsessed with the novel.. made a passionate case to the author, promising to respect the book’s fans without pandering to a teenage audience... Ms. Jacobson assured Ms. Collins she wouldn’t dilute the story by aging the characters up or by glamorizing its violence. “I loved the book as an adult,” Ms. Jacobson said firmly, 'I don’t think it’s a Y.A. novel'..."

(Ms Paul disagreed strongly with MS Jacobson as to whether the novel is young-adult...this is her concluding paragraph)

"...'The Hunger Games' is very much a young-adult novel. The story takes place in a postapocalyptic version of North America called Panem, where 16-year-old Katniss Everdeen assumes the place of her younger sister in a televised battle to the death known as the Hunger Games. The games are retribution for an earlier rebellion against the Capitol, which starves and represses the 12 remaining districts under its rule. Every year 24 children, a boy and girl from each district, must murder one another until one winner remains, an event relentlessly promoted to the entire nation. The ensuing action is similarly relentless — brutal, bloody and heartbreaking."...........................

Lit World has extradinary goals of helping one million children to learn to read by 2014; and by 2016, to "equip ten thousand literacy leaders to effect change that will impact ten million children across the globe." This year, they are opening Hubs in Haiti and the Phillipines.

"Worldwide, at least 793 million people remain illiterate. Two-thirds of them are women. All over the world, children are hungry for learning and for the power it brings. Researchshows that children learn to read and write best by writing and telling the stories of their own experiences. Yet it is rare to find safe spaces where children feel fully comfortable to do so.

LitWorld is changing that.

LitWorld stands on three core pillars: Advocacy, Education and Innovation. These pillars together create a complete approach to how we can impact outcomes for the world’s children and help them reach adulthood as readers and writers."

Read more, see the videos at www.litworld.org

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The Hunger Games movie was a smash hit...Younger kids, young adults and adults flocked to see the movie...However, The Storm of controversy continued regarding the appropriate age for young viewers...Here is an example. This is the conclusion ofDavid Denby's reviewin the New Yorker...

Kids At Risk

" 'The Hunger Games' is a prime example of commercial hypocrisy. The filmmakers
bait kids with a cruel idea, but they can’t risk being too intense or too graphic (the books are more explicit). After a while, we get the point: because children are the principal audience, the picture needs a PG-13 rating. The result is an evasive, baffling, unexciting production—anything but a classic."

And so the question remains. How much does money influence decisions as to whether a book or movie is suitable for Young Adults or Children...what criteria are involved...how old is old enough? ...............................................

" Children escape into reading not only in search of something beyond the space time to which they are confined, but also for comfort." -- Maria Tartar, Enchanted Hunters, The Power of Stories in Childhood

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4Paws for Ability

Every month 4 Paws for Ability has a graduation day (above) where trainers, volunteers, family members and children along with their specially trained therapy and service dogs gather for the start of a new life. These dogs bring love, healing, and practical assistance to children with special needs including Autism, epilectic seizures, Downs syndrme, physical disabilites and/or combinations of these and other challenging conditions.

A non-profit organization, 4 Paws for Ability is raising funds to implement a program to provide service dogs for military veterans in need. The information below is from their website:

"To honor the many service men and women who are still suffering from the conflicts of war, 4 Paws for Ability will be making service/assistance dogs available to help them lead a more independent life.

A special fundraising effort has been launched to be able to place dogs, with no effort on their part, with select disabled veterans of the most recent wars and conflicts including those in Iraq and Afganistan and any conflicts stemming from the tragic events of 9-11."

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Way Cool Dogs always seems to have a wonderful array of canine information, insights, and news...here are two diverse current excerpts...

Thank goodness for YouTube for some feel-good dog videos. Watch and enjoy the 5 best dog videos of the past years to make your heart feel good. At least … we think they are good, and so do our dogs. YouTube has the videos we use most for WayCoolDogs. Not only are they good quality ..(.read more and enjoy the videos -- Link below)

One of the big question most dog owners ask is what food should I feed my dog? We get confused easily because one brand will tell you what is right for your dog and a supermarket brand will contradict this. So it leaves us thinking what food should we buy from my Pet shop Online and how to feed my dog correctly. Here are a few tips to help sway you in favor of what dog food is perfect for your dog.

Write us at barkingplanet@aol.com and we will send you free reader copies of books from the Planet of the Dogs Series.

Read Dog Books to Dogs....Ask any therapy reading dog: "Do you like it when the the kids read dog books to you?"

For sample chapters of Planet Of The Dogs, Castle In The Mist and Snow Valley Heroes, A Christmas Tale, click here: Sample Chapters

(The scouts in the photo above (courtesy of Tracy Baetz) were participating in the Paws to Read program, set up by librarian Ginny Rawls in the Alexandria,VA, library. The therapy dog owner- volunteers participating in the Paws to Read program are fron the Washington, DC,PAL Organization (People Animals Love).

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from: Waggin Tales Therapy Dog Reading Program

"Thank you again for the Planet Of The Dogs books, the volunteers and their dogs loved them."-Kimberly Buckley,San Pablo,CA, Library

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The Storm... Huge box office results must influence decisions as to whether a book or movie is suitable for Young Adults or Children... These excerpts from Karen Raugust's article last November provide some idea of the huge financial rewards being generated...

How Much Influence do Kid's Books -- and Young Adult -- have on Movies...and vice versa? By Karen Raugust

"Fourteen of the 50 movies with the all-time largest U.S. box office totals are based on high-profilebooks from four series. The Harry Potter franchise accounts for seven of them, collectively generating more than $2 billion in U.S. ticket sales. The three Lord of the Rings films spurred ticket purchases of more than $1 billion, and the Twilight Saga (three movies to date) almost $900 million. The newest addition to the list, The Hunger Games, took in over $400 million in theaters this year. And the release of Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2 and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will certainly add to these totals...All four franchises were already bestselling book series prior to the films. Still, with their massive publicity and wide demographic appeal, blockbuster movies can boost the fortunes of the publishers upon whose books they are based...Fourth-quarter 2012 sales in Scholastic’s book publishing and distribution group more than tripled over the same quarter the previous year, due to the release of the Hunger Games movie."

To date, First Book has distributed more than 100 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families throughout the United States and Canada. First Book is transforming the lives of children in need and elevating the quality of education by making new, high-quality books available on an ongoing basis...

The children in the photo have just received copies of of Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss from First Book. The event took place at Martha's Tablein Washington, DC, a non-profit organization dedicated to serving the needs of homeless and low income children and adults.

Kyle Zimmer, President and Founder of First Books, presented the 100th million book to a boy named Chase Kennedy-Williams. Any school or organization working with kids in need is eligible to get books from First Book.

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Circling the Waggins: How 5 Misfit Dogs Saved Me from Bewilderness

The title says it well...when I read Circling the Waggins, I found myself on a
journey into the heart and mind of author C.A. (Ariel) Wulff, a dedicated pet loving woman who shares her experiences, concerns and deep emotions with the reader.

The setting is a cabin-home in a national park forest. The primarycharacters are several adopted dogs, and cats, and two compassionate
women living in a world founded on the love of dogs. Living in this unigue word ultimately gives Ms Wulff a new awareness and understanding of the experience of living.

The photo (above left) is of the author and Waldo, a key player in the book. The photo (above right) is of Rocket Boy, a high energy bundle of affection. The book is available from Amazon and Barnes&Noble. For more information on Ms Wulff's books, dog rescue activities, and yelodoggie art, visit WULFF

How to Change the World in 30 Seconds:A Web Warrior’s Guide to Animal Advocacy Online

...Here are excerpts:

" I SAVED A LIFE TODAY. It was one of several dozen lives that I have saved this year, and each time, it took me only 30 seconds. But that's not all -- this year I also prevented the torture of hundreds of innocents, and prevented the illness of thousands more. I am not a super hero, a doctor or a member of the military; I am an animal advocate."

"ANIMAL ADVOCACY AND RESCUE have changed dramatically over recent years because the Internet has become such a valuable and effective tool in saving lives. No matter what your time constraints; whether you have thirty seconds or twelve hours a day to devote to advocacy, you can become a Web Warrior."

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The Storm continues...

Educating Alice/Monica Edinger

Some of you may recall my earlier rant about the way the term “young adult” is more and more being used to describe books that are for children. Well, I think there is something of that same sensibility going on with the new Hobbit movie trilogy. The source material is a children’s book, The Hobbit, written long before The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and with the style and tone of a book for kids. There is a narrator that makes little comments now and then, a classical fairy tale bumbling hero who turns into something more, moments of cleverness that are typical of fairy tales, plenty of whimsy and humor to mediate the scary moments, and a — yay!– dragon.

I like fairy stories, especially those known as literary fairy tales of which The Hobbit is very much one. Such books for me are different than those of high, high fantasy — those that seem to follow on epics like Beowulf, the Iliad and Odyssey, and such. Stories like The Hobbit are smaller, set on smaller stages, with smaller stakes. Say trying to get one’s gold back from a dragon versus saving the world from a ring that will destroy everything.....

I could go on and on, but there is no point. This Hobbit movie series is simply not for children. It is yet again another situation of a children’s book being taken and turned into YA. Sure, there are kids who will love the movie just as there are kids who love LOTR and World of Warcraft. But there are many who will not, who won’t even be taken to this. And so, indeed, here is yet another case of something that is still very much for children has been taken over by something else

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All books in the Planet Of The Dogs series can be purchased at your

favorite independent bookstore or on the internet through Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Powells and many others.

Librarians, teachers, bookstores -- order our books directly from Ingram...professional discount, of course. For sample chapters of all books in the Planet Of The Dogs series, click:SampleChapters

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Here is Cinderella as you have never seen her before -- unless you are already familiar with

the brilliant dance creations by Matthew Bourne... Here, in one minute and thirty five seconds you will experience an amazing interpretation, set in London in WW Two, of Cinderella... with magnificent music by Prokoviev...Far removed from Disney...Link:Cinderella...illustrating the role of the creative imagination working with a classic fairy tale from the book, Histoires ou contes du temps, published by Charles Perrault in 1697.

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The Storm continues in the Latest News From Elizabeth Bird

The Children's Literary Salon is pleased to announce our next event on Saturday, February 2nd at 2:00 p.m.

This event will be held in the main branch of NYPL (The Stephen A. Schwarzman Building) located at 42nd Street and 5th Avenue in the South Court Auditorium. No reservations necessary. For questions about the event please contact Elizabeth Bird at elizabethbird@nypl.org.

VideoGames for kids and YA linked to NRA Gun Promotions on Internet...

"As Electronic Arts prepared to market Medal of Honor Warfighter, the latest version of its top-selling video game released in October, it created a Web site that promoted the manufacturersof the guns, knives and combat-style gear depicted in the game.Among the video game giant’s marketing partners on the Web sitewere the McMillan Group, the maker of a high-powered sniper’s rifle, and Magpul, which sells high-capacity magazines and other accessories for assault-style weapons.Links on the Medal of Honor site allowed visitors to click through on the Web sites of the game’s partners and peruse their catalogs..." To read more: KidsGame

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You Tube...from remarkable Guide Dogs to Polar Bears...

I was watching a video about Guide Dogs of America and one guide dog video led to
another, causing me to once again appreciate the extraordinary ability of dogs to make life better for people ...Guide Dogs of America provides guide dogs and instruction in their use, free of charge, to blind and visually impaired men and women from the United States and Canada.

“We wanted another family member, someone to fill out the cast, a supporting actress,” John Homans, the executive editor at New York magazine, writes in his engaging and informative
book that is both a survey of the latest research on canine cognition and a memoir of his yearswith his Lab mix, Stella. As a puppy, Stella found her way from Tennessee to an animal shelter near New York City. Even at 12 weeks old and locked in a cage, she seemed “self-possessed, happy for attention but not demanding it,” the author recalls. The Homans family took to her immediately and adopted her to be a companion for their soon-to-be 10-year-old son — thereby bringing the comedic and mysterious presence of canine intelligence into their lives.

Curious about how Stella’s brain works and how she adapted to her new family, Homans seeks out experts who can explain “the strangeness of having this predator in my home, lying on her back, waiting to get her stomach scratched.” He meets with scientists, trainers and breeders to understand why so many of us bond with dogs, and why dog ownership is on the rise. There were 77 million dogs in America in 2010, up from 53 million in 1996. “We’ve seen a linear explosion in pet populations in Western countries over the past 40 years,” one researcher says. “People are living more isolated lives, are having fewer children, their marriages aren’t lasting. All these things sort of break down a social network and happen to exactly coincide with the growth in pet populations. What’s happening is simply that we’re allowing animals to fill the gap in our lives...”

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A dog is lying by the side of the road...What do I do? What are my options? I want to be helpful, but this is all new to me... For answers, examples, true stories and more, visit Sunbear Squad...Let the experience of compassionate dog lovers guide you.SunbearSquad

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"If I have any beliefs about immortality, it is that certain dogs that I have known will go to heaven, and very, very few persons." -- James Thurber

DOG WORLD LINKS

Animal Literature"The more we study animals the more we understand ourselves, whether through books or live encounters," writes Barbara Julian, former librarian, animal and book lover, and owner of the Overleaf Cafe-Bookstore...literate, insightful and relevant posts are found at Animal Literature.

BookHoundsAn action-packed fun site for books, gardens, Dogs, interviews and non-stop book Giveaways...

Good Books for Kids -- ReviewsA wonderful site for parents, teachers and librarians...
Pam and Don write caring, relevant and very informative reviews...outstanding...

Booking MamaA passionate reader, an ardent book reviewer, with a young reading daughter who also reviewed for us... a dynamic reading duo...

Books Ahoy...Book Thoughts by LisaA self-proclaimed bookaholic, mother of five young book lovers, and reviewer...a family woman in and a
world of books...lots of book finds, giveaways and author interviews...

Joyful PawsThe website for Frankie the Walk 'nRoll Dog and his mom, BarbTeschel...inspiration for all ages in the story of this couageous dog...Frankie and Barb are reaching out to others to share their story...

Lesa's Book CritiquesLively, literate and relevant reviews by a professional librarian and book lover...the focus is on mysteries, but a world of good reading awaits you here